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Lowry named co-NL Player of the Week

Lowry named co-NL Player of the Week

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By Kevin Yanik
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MLB.com |

Giants left-hander Noah Lowry's bad-luck run is over now.

Lowry was named co-National League Player of the Week, as presented by Bank of America, for a pair of brilliant outings during the week ending Aug. 27. He shares the honor with Marlins third baseman Miguel Cabrera.

Last week, Lowry was 2-0 with a 0.53 ERA and nine strikeouts. One of those wins was a complete-game, 5-0 victory against the Diamondbacks on Aug. 21. The other victory came against the Reds, against whom Lowry surrendered just one run over eight innings.

The wins were well-deserved, considering the decisions Lowry was dealt over his previous five outings. He was 0-1 with a 3.60 ERA during that span, and pitched another outstanding nine innings Aug. 5 against the
Rockies. Unfortunately, he took a tough-luck no-decision in that game, which the Giants eventually lost.

Lowry hasn't lost his competitive edge, though, despite winning just seven games in 22 starts this season. And that, teammate Mike Stanton said, should continue to make the 25-year-old Lowry even better.

"What Noah has, that a lot of guys have to develop, is that killer instinct," Stanton said. "He's an incredibly competitive guy, and he takes that with him to the mound. If he keeps that, along with that swing-and-miss changeup, he's going to go a long way."

Manager Felipe Alou would agree.

"[Lowry's] an athlete," Alou said. "He's the kind of guy you look into the future that could win a Gold Glove. He's one of the better hitting pitchers in the game. He's a good baserunner. When he pitches, it's like you have nine position players out there."

What about that arm of his? Lowry pitched a couple of dazzlers last week, when the Giants pulled within two games of those Wild Card-leading Reds. A couple more shutouts like the one he tossed at the D-Backs, and the Giants could very well take the lead in the Wild Card race in the next week or so.

"It's a great thing. It's been a long time since I've had one," said Lowry, whose shutout was crafted with 114 pitches. "And I'll take a win any way, to tell you the truth."

So will the Giants and so will Alou, who was wowed once again Saturday after Lowry stymied the Reds while battling a head cold.

"That was a great game by Lowry," Alou said. "He's had a few outings like that lately, so he's capable of having more games like that."

Kevin Yanik is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.